Misunderstood
by Gazlover12-Canada
Summary: Alfred is an enthusiastic young science teacher working at a High school. He cares a lot about every single one of his students, even troubled teenage Arthur Kirkland, who is a very misunderstood person. He is determined to show Arthur that people care. Student!Arthur Teacher!Alfred fic
1. Chapter 1

"Okay now, who can tell me the first stage of cellular respiration?" Alfred F. Jones, known as just Mr. Jones to his students, asked during his first period, which was lab biology for Sophomores. The young and energetic teacher scanned the classroom, chuckling at all of the tired faces.

"Come on, not one answer? I know it's a Monday, but at least give me something!" He fake begged, clasping his hands together in a pleading motion. His face brightened when he saw one of his smarter students raise his hand. "Way to go Kiku! What do you got for me?"

"I believe the first stage would be glycolysis," The Japanese student answered quietly.

"Yes, yes!" Alfred praised him. "And we all know what happens during glycolysis right? Glucose is broken down into 2 molecules of pyruvate. We also have a net gain of two ATP molecules, and then two NADH are formed as well."

Science was something that Alfred loved dearly. He taught Both Lab Biology for Sophomores, and also AP Physics for Juniors and Seniors. Though many students detested these type of sciences, labeling them a boring, most students still enjoyed his classes (except for on Mondays).

He was able to make most of his classes exciting. He was one of the younger teachers, at 24, and was able to relate to the 'young crowd' quite well. For some reason a lot of the girl students would blush and giggle whenever talking to him, probably because Alfred was quite a good looking young man. He was also very passionate about being able to relate to all of his students, and made his classroom a fun learning environment.

His classroom was one of the brightest in the school (Hetalia High). The walls were covered with posters, but humorously none of them related to science. They were all posters of super heroes, like the Avengers, Superman, Spiderman, you get the picture. It was also very common to see horribly hidden comic books on his desk, which he would read whenever a test or quiz was given out.

"To help those brains wake up, I have a worksheet all about glycolysis!" Alfred said brightly, as if he were telling them that they'd all won the lottery. Most of the class groaned. "Oh don't be like that! It's actually extremely easy, so long as you've been listening during the past few classes. Plus most of the answers are on on page 208 in your textbook. If you're stuck, I'm happy to help. Once you finish this you can have the rest of the period to chill."

This seemed to considerably cheer the class up, seeing at the block was eighty minutes long and they were only twenty minutes into the period.

"Can we work with partners?" One girl asked.

"Absolutely," Alfred replied. "But try to both do the same amount of work."

Once all the worksheets were passed out, the room turned into a calm atmosphere filled with quiet chatter. Some students worked with others, while others just jammed out to their ipods while working alone. Alfred sat at his desk and tried to focus on correcting a quiz that his physics class had taken the other week.

"Excuse me Mr. Jones, sorry to interrupt your class," A voice spoke from the doorway. It was Mr. Edelstein, otherwise known Roderich to the staff. He was one of the two guidance counselors in the school. Though he sometimes came across as having a rather strict demeanor, he really did care for his students. He was married to Elizaveta, who was the other guidance counselor.

"Roderich, come on in! What can I do for 'ya?" Alfred greeted, standing up from his seat. He had a good idea what the Austrian's visit was for though, due to the teenager who was standing slightly behind him.

"Good morning Mr Jones," Roderich greeted him smoothly. "I'm just here to return Arthur to class. I'm afraid he was rather intent on skipping today. Do see that he gets some work done."

Arthur Kirkland. Fierce, defensive, brilliant, lonely...so many words to describe him. He was fifteen years old, just a Sophomore. More importantly, he was Alfred's student. Arthur was a terribly misunderstood child. He had gone through a lot of traumatic changes this year, ever since the death of his mother.

Alfred knew from other teachers that Arthur had been one of the best students around before then. He was a straight A student, hardworking, polite, and very helpful to peers. So gentlemen-like. Not anymore though. He had just given up with schooling. He would sit there and stare at any paper given out, when he was in class that is. Often he would try to skip, but the teachers were getting very good at finding him, especially Roderich.

Arthur lived with his older brothers now. Apparently his dad had abandoned their family long before their mother's death, when Arthur had just been small. Miss Kirkland had been a strong woman though; she still managed to work a steady job to support her four boys, and also have the time to volunteer with many school things.

Unfortunately towards the end of last school year, she had been in a terribly car wreck and died instantly. Arthur's oldest brother, who was 22, managed to gain custody of his brother's. Alfred wasn't sure, but he believed that Arthur might not get along with his family very well. Though he never mentioned it aloud, sometimes Arthur would show up to class with his eyes red and puffy from crying. On those days he would only sit in his seat with his head down, completely oblivious to Alfred's teaching.

Back to the present, Alfred glanced at Roderich with a knowing look before turning his gaze to Arthur, giving him a bright smile.

"Hi there Artie, glad you could join us!" He greeted him. He was answered by the teen rolling his eyes and stomping over towards his seat, which was in the very back corner. Other students nearby scooted away a bit. He'd used to have a lot of friends, but he'd pushed them all away and now many students didn't even try anymore. Some even feared him because of his rather cold attitude, but Alfred knew that it was probably a coverup. Big tragedies, like death, could make people act such a way as a defense.

"Would you mind if we had a word in the hall?" Roderich asked.

"Sure thing," Alfred said, wondering what it could be. Probably something about Arthur. Anyways, he followed the Guidance counselor out into the hallway, gently closing the door behind them.

"I've signed him up for detention with you, three times a week for the next two months starting today. I know it's harsh, but he must learn that this behavior isn't appropriate." Roderich informed him.

"Wha- detention with me?" Alfred asked, a little stunned. He didn't exactly enjoy giving detentions. Besides, usually he never had to, as students rarely acted up in his classroom.

"Yes, seeing as he tries to skip out on your class the most. Don't think of them badly though. While you have him, try to get him caught up in your class. He can also work on things for other classes as well." Roderich said, and then sighed. "I want him to understand that he isn't alone. He was such a remarkable student before this. I don't give up on any student, and I believe that he can change."

"I believe in him too," Alfred said, smiling. "He's a good kid. But wait...what if he skips my detentions?"

"He won't, trust me" Roderich said, "He's already in enough trouble, and it's in school suspension for a week from 7am to 4pm if he tries skipping your detention. I've already had a talk with him about it."

"Oh, alright then," Alfred said, feeling a bit bad for Arthur. He wanted the teen to like him, but he was sure that Arthur wouldn't be too thrilled with him since he had detentions with him.

"Well, I need to go. Gilbert Beilschmidt was skipping with Arthur, so I still need to deal with him." Roderich informed him. "Have a good day Mr. Jones."

Gilbert could supposedly be considered as Arthur's only friend. Or maybe partner in crime was a better word for it. They skipped together, vandalized together, basically just caused trouble. That was why they never had classes together, because if those two were in the same classroom, the teacher would be in hell Gilbert was actually a year older than Arthur, a junior, but he'd stayed back in a lot of classes.

Alfred went back into the classroom, glad to see that his students were all working quietly with one another still. Well, except for one that it. Arthur had his head down on his desk, eyes half closed. The American teacher walked over to his desk and grabbed one of the blank worksheets before heading over to the teenage Brit.

"Okay Art, lemme show you what we're doing today," Alfred said, pulling over an empty chair to sit beside his student. "Do you have your textbook with you?"

"No," Arthur told him, as if that were completely obvious due to his blank desk.

"That's okay, I have an extra," Alfred said, reaching behind them and getting one form the cabinet. "Alrighty then. Now let's get to page 208 and see what we've got here."

"No thanks," Arthur told him. "I'd really rather not."

"Well I'd really rather you do it," Alfred replied. "You haven't been doing much work at all lately. I believe that you have a 23 in my class if I'm not mistaken, so we have to get cracking if you don't want to fail this quarter."

"So what if I fail?" Arthur asked in boredom.

"You don't want to fail Arthur," Alfred told him seriously. "It's really important to graduate. I know it may seem like things suck now, but it'll get better."

"Whatever. You can go now, I don't need your help."

"Nonsense. Now let's get to work! Question number one..."

The rest of the period went by quickly. Arthur really wasn't that enthusiastic about it, but Alfred did manage to get him to finish the whole worksheet. Alfred knew for sure that Arthur wasn't stupid. He was in fact very intelligent. After all, he managed to answer a lot of the questions without even looking in the book. He just wasn't motivated for school anymore, and Alfred wanted to fix that.

"Good job today Artie. I'll see you after school." Alfred said, giving him his best 100 watt smile.

"Unfortunately. And please refrain from calling me that atrocious nickname." Was all Arthur said, and was the first to leave once the bell rang. Alfred had to laugh. Honestly, from the way Arthur sometimes talked he sounded like an old college professor rather than a fifteen year old boy.

Alfred had the next period as his break, so he used the time to first get a cup of coffee, and then work on setting up a wicked cool experiment for his AP physics class, which was dropping eggs down the stairs and measuring the distance, velocity, ect. The janitors even allowed them to do it, so long as they cleaned up afterwards.

Two o'clock came pretty fast for a Monday. Alfred would have Arthur with him until four. The teacher waited for a few minutes, but there was no sign of Arthur as all the students quickly raced to the halls to their busses and cars. Alfred was just about to call Roderich when Arthur came into the room, walking over to his seat and slinging his bag onto the floor.

"Hi Art, glad you could make it!" Alfred said.

"Mhm. Well, what is it I'm to do?" Arthur asked.

"Luckily nothing too bad today. I've decided to go easy on you since it's a Monday," Alfred joked. "Come on up here to my desk."

Arthur gave an annoyed sigh, but came up to his teacher's desk, wondering what he was going to have to do. Surprisingly Alfred began pulling out plastic pots, bags of soil, and seeds."

"Since I know cell respiration can be boring to learn about, I figured that we can do a little side project for fun. The whole class can grow plants and keep a log about them! How much they grow, measurement changes, all that stuff. I need you to help me fill up the pots with soil and sort the seeds so they can be ready for tomorrow. Think you can handle it?"

"Fine," Arthur said. "Is that all?"

"Yup. It probably won't take up the whole detention though, so after that we can try to catch up on some of your other missing work." Alfred told him. Arthur looked like he had just walked into hell, but only nodded and began rolling up his sleeves.

For the next forty minutes they got to work. At first it had been silent, but of course Alfred was never the type of guy for silence.

"So, what are your plans after detention?" He asked.

"What's it to you?" Arthur grumbled.

"I dunno," Alfred shrugged. "When I get home, I think I'm gonna take my brother out to eat. I live with him you know, we share a house. He actually works in an animal clinic. He's still finishing up college though. Someday after he graduates he'll own his very own clinic!"

Arthur didn't look the slightest bit interested in his words, focusing on filling up each pot with an even amount of soil. Alfred's mind reeled for ways to make Arthur talk.

"So what about you? Any pets?" He decided on asking.

"I...I used to have a cat." Arthur answered.

"Wow, really? What happened to him?" Alfred wondered.

"That's none of your concern," Arthur replied sharply. It was silent before Alfred sighed and looked at Arthur with an expression of complete genuine guilt.

"I'm sorry Arthur, I'm just trying to make this fun. I really didn't want to give you these detentions. I know how hard things have been for you recently." He said.

"I don't want your pity." Arthur said, but his tone wasn't at all menacing. It was more like muttered, and his eyes remained on the pot he was filling.

"I know that," Alfred said. "But its okay to reach out to people you know. Roderich is a great guidance counselor. He really cares about you. So do all the other teachers in this school. A lot of students too."

"Um..right then." Arthur said. "Now quit trying to act all caring! I don't need any help, I can handle myself...and I'm finished filling all of these."

"Great job! Now, since you still have an hour, you can work on other things for this class. I made a folder filled with all your missing work. Try to get some of it done, kay? You can sit near my desk up here if you want, in case you have any questions," Alfred told him.

"No thanks," Arthur answered instantly, moving all the way back to his own desk.

The rest of the time passed by sort of slowly, but not really badly. Well, not bad for Alfred at least. He had finished grading all of his quizzes, and now he was working on the lesson plans for tomorrow. Every once and awhile he glanced at Arthur, and was glad to see that the boy seemed to be working on his papers. When it reached four o'clock, Alfred leaned back in his seat and stretched his arms.

"That went pretty well! It's four now, so you're free to leave." Alfred told his student.

"Finally," Arthur said with a relieved sigh. He grabbed his bag and began walking quickly towards the door.  
"Wait, hold on a sec!" Alfred stopped him.

"What now?" Arthur grumbled, clearly aggravated.

"What about your work folder? Aren't you going to take it home with you?" Alfred asked, indicating the the folder which the teenager had left still on his desk.

"Um...no. Why would I?" Arthur answered.

"So you can get caught up?" Alfred said, sounding sort of like a question.

"That's what your detentions are for, if I'm not mistaken. Good day Mr. Jones," Arthur said, turning back around to leave.

"Acting like this won't help anything you know," Alfred said, almost coldly if not intimidatingly, causing Arthur to stop dead in his tracks again. "What'll happen when all of your classmates move on ahead and graduate in the next few years, leaving you behind? You won't get a good job...it won't help one bit. You still have a chance to turn away from this behavior...to make something of yourself."

"Nobody understands..." Arthur whispered, and Alfred had to strain his ears to hear him. He took a step closer, wanting to reach a hand out but refraining from doing so. They just needed some sort of breakthrough from him. Alfred knew for a fact that Arthur needed help. He was lonely, scared, lost. Maybe even depressed.

"Then help us understand Arthur. We're not the bad guys here. School is supposed to be fun! Whenever you need to talk, people will listen here. It's what we're all here for. Not just to drill boring facts into your heads, but to _guide_."

"That's what you say now. Once I'm finally old enough to get out of here, you'll just all be relieved to be rid of me. See you tomorrow sir," Arthur sneered, and finally made it out of the classroom.

Alfred didn't follow him.

* * *

The next morning, Alfred was actually at school earlier than he needed to be for once. Matthew's car had gotten a bad coolant leak and was in the shop, and so Alfred had to bring to to work, which was earlier than when Alfred's work started. Instead of going back home after dropping him off though, he had instead drove right to work. Now he had an extra half hour to kill.

"Good morning Alfred!" Tino, an English teacher, greeted him as he came into the room.

"Oh, hey dude," Alfred greeted him back. "Hows it going?"

"Oh just fine! I'm excited today, my juniors are presenting their project's today. After that We're going to have pizza to reward them." Tino told him.

"Wow, that's awesome! Maybe I'll drop by," Alfred joked.

"Go ahead, we'll have plenty I'm sure."

After Alfred and Tino had finished chatting, Alfred refilled his coffee and headed to his own classroom. He decided to relax and just read one of his new comic books until the warning bell rang. Once it did, at seven like always, it didn't take long for student's to come into the classroom.

"Good morning Mr. Jones," A few of the girls greeted him with blushes.

"Morning ladies," He said back with a wink, causing them to all giggle. His attention was drawn away from them when he saw somebody else come into the room.

Surprisingly on time for once, was Arthur. Alfred grinned, but then examined him closer. Arthur' s eyes were red and swollen, indicating that he had been crying. He didn't even glance around him as he hurried toward his desk, putting his head down. Alfred's grin turned into a frown. Uh-oh, looks like today was a bad morning.

"Welcome to my humble abode ladies and gentlemen!" Alfred greeted the whole class very enthusiastically, clasping his hands together. A few people snickered. "I am happy to say that it is no longer a Monday, so everyone can be cheerful once again."

"But it's still nowhere near the end of the week," A random student pointed out.

"That may be true. My worst day is always Wednesday though. It's right in the middle. Not a new start, not a thrilling end. Know what I mean?" Alfred said. A few people mumbled in agreement.

"However, enough of this talk! Let's get to work!"

Alfred ended up introducing the side plant project to them first, and had them all take a pot, choose a seed, plant away. He even managed to go down to Mr. Vargas's art room and get a box of supplies so they could decorate their pots. He knew they were high schoolers, but who didn't love doing stuff like that?

"Kiku, could I speak to you after class?" Alfred asked casually, an idea reeling in his mind.

"Of course Sir," Kiku said, a little uncomfortably.

"Don't worry, you're not in trouble!" Alfred assured him. That seemed to calm down the Japanese boy considerably.

After that he strolled around the classroom, admiring everyone's work. He stopped randomly at people's desks, praising them for planting their seed correctly. He was sort of glad to see that even Arthur had managed to plant a seed, despite not decorating it at all. Today Arthur didn't have a detention with him, seeing as it was only three days a week, and the days were Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Alfred decided not to speak with him, because Arthur really didn't look in the mood to chat.

After class ended, Kiku made his way up to Alfred's desk as the rest of the student's filed out.

"You wanted to speak with me Mr. Jones?"

"Oh yeah! I have a question to ask you." Alfred said, walking over to his door and shutting it once all of the students made it out. "What do you think of Arthur Kirkland?"

"Arthur?" Kiku asked, a little taken aback. "Well...I'm not sure. We used to talk sometimes last year. He was different then though...um, I feel deeply sorry for what has happened to him though."

"Yeah. Well, I have a sort of request for you," Alfred said. "You see, Artie's been having a tough time lately. He really didn't look too happy today. I was thinking maybe if somebody talked to him...it doesn't have to be much. Just a hello, how 'ya doing? That sort of thing. Maybe at lunch, or in the hallway...you know."

"Oh. Alright, I suppose I can do that." Kiku agreed. "Though I'm not sure if he would enjoy talking to me. He's um...not very sociable anymore."

"Well, just see what you can do," Alfred told him. "Anyway, I'd better let you get to class. Want me to write a pass in case you don't make it in time?"

"Yes please."

* * *

Alfred really enjoyed teaching AP Physics. Mostly because the people who took that class were very dedicated, and especially loved his teachings. Physics was optional, unlike Biology for Sophomores, so the people who took this class chose it because they _liked _physics.

Today it was Wednesday, and last period, which was AP Physics. They were taking a test, and then he was allowing him to work on their projects that had been assigned last week. Today he had Arthur for another detention. Once again the boy had shown up to his class on time, but today thankfully he didn't seem very upset like yesterday. Alfred wasn't sure if Kiku had ever talked to him, but hopefully so. Soon enough the bell rang, and he said goodbye to his students.

"Hi there," Alfred greeted Arthur once he arrived for is detention.

"Hello," Arthur responded dully.

"I can give you a choice today. You can work on your folder of stuff for my class, or you can do a geometry packet that your math teacher dropped off." Alfred told him, holding out each of the choices in his hands. Arthur didn't hesitate to take the biology folder from his teacher's hand.

"So did you have a good day?"

"That isn't any of your concern." Arthur said, making his way towards his seat. Alright, obviously he wasn't in a talking mood today. Alfred didn't bother him, and left him to get some of his work done.

"Alright, let's take a short halfway break. Come on up here Arthur," Alfred said an hour later.

"How come?"

"Just come up here dude, and you'll see. Bring up a chair too." Was all Alfred told him. Arthur huffed, but came up to his desk anyway, dragging a chair with him.

"Here pick one," Alfred said once Arthur was seated. He held out two Gatorade, one red bottle, and then a blue one.

"I thought food in drinks weren't allowed in biology classrooms?" Arthur pointed out, and eyebrow raised.

"Well class isn't in session, so whatever. Now choose."

Arthur hesitated, but then grabbed the red one. He didn't open it, and instead just set it down in front of him. Alfred shrugged and opened his own, taking a large gulp.

"So, what was going on yesterday?" Alfred asked casually.

"Nothing," Arthur responded immediately.

"It didn't look like nothing to me. You looked pretty upset. You know I'll always listen if you need to talk." Alfred reminded him gently.

"I don't want to talk about it," Arthur replied softly.

"Okay, then I wont push you anymore," Alfred said. "We'll talk about something else. What's your favorite class this semester? No wait, let me guess! It had to be my class, right?"

"English," Arthur corrected him.

"English huh? Well, I guess not everybody has to love science." Alfred said with a laugh. "What are you guys doing in English right now?"

"Reading Hamlet. It's a tragedy Shakespeare." Arthur told him, and Alfred detected a bit of excitement in his tone. Maybe they were getting somewhere.

"Are you a Shakespeare fan? My brother enjoys his stories. I've never really read much of his stuff, well besides Romeo and Juliet when I was in school."

"We studied that one last year. I had already read it though, so it was easy for me." Arthur told him a little smugly.

"So I guess you don't skip English much huh?" Alfred asked.

"I suppose."

"How come you like missing my class so much? I try to make it fun. Is it just because you dislike science?" Alfred wondered.

"I don't know," Arthur said a little uncomfortably. "I just don't like first period. Ever."

"Too early for you?" Alfred asked good naturdly.

"I guess."

Arthur really didn't want to talk much after that, so Alfred allowed him to get back to work on his papers. When four o'clock came this time around, Alfred couldn't help but notice that Arthur slipped the folder into his backpack, causing the American to smile. Okay, they were definitely making progress for sure.

* * *

The next morning for once Arthur actually came into the classroom before the bell even rang! It was shocking. Sadly though, he looked to be in great distress. He'd hurried towards his seat, dropped his bag to the ground, and put his hands to his face. Alfred looked up at him, feeling alarmed when he heard barely concealed sobs.

"Talk to me Arthur. What's wrong." He asked, rushing across the empty classroom towards his student.

"D-don't talk to me," Arthur said, trying to sound tough but failing. "Go away."

"Come here Arthur," Alfred murmured gently, taking the teen's arm and gently pulling him up. Surprisingly he didn't resist, but refused to took his teacher in the face. "You don't have to attend class today. Come on, you need to lie down."

"Stop helping m-me," Arthur ordered, but didn't fight as Alfred led him out of the classroom and down the hall. There was still a few minutes till the bell, and a few students in the hall looked shocked as Alfred led the upset teen down the hall.

"No," Arthur tried to stop when he saw where Alfred was taking him; to the guidance office.

"Shh, it's alright Arthur." Alfred reassured him, leading him inside. The guidance office was a pleasant place, painted bright and cheerful. There was a main desk with a secretary, and two doors which led to Roderich and Elizaveta's offices. Alfred saw Roderich hanging up his jacket on the coat hanging outside the door to his office.

"What on earth?" The Austrian asked, eyed widening when he saw Alfred and Arthur.

"Hiya Roderich!" Alfred greeted him, putting both hands on Arthur's shoulders. "Artie isn't really having a good morning. Is it okay if he goes into Elizaveta's office to lie down? I know she has a couch in there. Arthur can be excused from my class today."

"Of course," Roderich said, putting a hand around Arthur's shoulders. "Come along, let me bring you into Lizzy's office. She's not in there at the moment, but I'll explain the situation to her."

Alfred waited outside for Roderich to get Arthur settled. Once the guidance counselor came back out, he quietly shut Elizaveta's door behind him, turning to face Alfred.

"What happened?" He asked.

"I'm not really sure. I mean, it's not uncommon for him to come to class upset, but it was just really bad today. Look Roderich, I really think he might be having some problems at home." Alfred said.

"I know. Actually I've decided to have his older brother come in for a meeting with me next week. I'd appreciate it if you were present as well."

"Of course, I'd be glad to. Just give me a time." Alfred said. "I should probably get to class though, the bells about to ring."

"Alright. Have a good class Mr. Jones."

As Alfred left the guidance office, he knew that Arthur really needed help. Obviously he was very unhappy, both at home and at school.

He only hoped that they would be able to help him, and that he would accept their help.

**a/n: **

**What do you think? Want some more?**

**So...um, I know now isn't the time to start a new story since I have others to update, but you know...when you get struck with inspiration, you have to get it out. I really felt the need to write a troubled student Arthur, and an Alfred teacher story. No idea why, it just happened. Sorry if there are any errors...I'll fix them later. Anyway, I should get going, the dogs need to go for a run.**

**I hope everyone is having a good day!**


	2. Chapter 2

Today was Friday, which left pretty much everyone in a cheerful mood despite the rain outside. Alfred whistled to himself as he drew out a diagram of the Kreb's Cycle on the board. He was in an extra good mood because this weekend he and Matthew were going to visit their mother. It was a long drive, 4 hours to be exact, but it was worth it.

Alfred worried about his mother often. When he was sixteen, his father had contracted a rare type of brain cancer. He had passed on only a few months after being diagnosed. Their family had been strong and pulled through though, with the help of neighbors, aunts, and uncles. Ever since he and Matt had gone to college and then moved out though, Alfred knew his mother was lonely. That was why they tried to see her as often as they could.

Partly why Alfred felt he could relate to Arthur was because when he was a teenager he'd had to deal with his father's death as well. Of course Arthur's situation was a bit worse, seeing as he had no parents at all now, but nonetheless Alfred at least understood a part of what Alfred was going through.

Alfred had dealt with his dad's death a little different then how Arthur was dealing with his mom's death though. Alfred did keep his feeling bottled up, but he hid them behind smiles and laughter. He'd joined football, baseball, basically all the sports. He'd had many friends and been pretty popular. However, one day he had just broke down in his room because it had just been too much. Matthew had found him holding a knife to his wrist. After that Alfred's mother set him up with a therapist, and things had gotten better.

He didn't want that to happen to Arthur. One day, he knew, Arthur was going to have a major break down if they didn't help him now. He hadn't seen Arthur since his breakdown yesterday, but Roderich had told him that Arthur had been better by lunch and was able to make it to his last period.

The bell soon rang and as usual his Sophomores came in, all rowdy and excited for the weekend. Some teachers hated loud and rowdy classrooms, but Alfred totally liked it. He didn't like having his students shut up, silent, and still. Nah, he wanted them to be themselves. Creative, talkative, and just basically happy.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Arthur come into the room as well. He looked much better than yesterday, but perhaps a little tired. It was a little odd, because instead of wearing his usual dark punk band shirts and skinny jeans, he instead wore an over sized green hoodie that matched his eyes, and regular jeans. It made him look a lot younger in Alfred's opinion.

"Hi everyone, isn't it a wonderful Friday?" Alfred greeted his class, finishing the last touches of his chart on the board. "Who has exciting plans for the weekend?"

Several people raised their hands, prattling on about movie dates, parties, and so on.

"What are you doing this weekend Mr. Jones?" Someone asked.

"My brother and I are visiting our mom. She lives awhile away, so we don't get to see her that often." Alfred told them. "It's gonna be awesome! She promised to bake one of her famous blueberry pies for us."

One of Alfred's routines was to chat with his students for a few minutes before doing anything else. He remembered his own school days, and used to hate it when the teachers would just make them all be quiet and get to work. Once they'd had a rather long conversation debating different pie flavors, it was time to get the class started.

"For the first ten minutes I figured y'all could check on your plants. Some of them should start sprouting soon." Alfred instructed. "After that I have this awesome lecture planned over the Kreb's Cycle. Don't worry though, I know how boring it can be, so I'll try to speed through it as long as you all promise to take notes."

As the class got to work with recording their plants, Alfred went over to Arthur, who was even participating today. That meant that he was having a good day, much to Alfred's relief.

"Hi Artie, you're looking a lot better today. Got any exciting plans for the weekend?" He greeted his student.

"Not really," Arthur shrugged, writing something down in his plant recording book. "Just...nothing."

Alfred had at first been excited, thinking that Arthur was actually going to tell him something willingly, but then just smiled. He was close at least.

"Nothing huh? Well I'm sure you'll find something to do."

Just like that, he moved on to go chat with his other students. Alfred had a particularly long conversation with Kiku about the upcoming science fair. You see, Kiku was in the science club. Technically he could have gone far ahead to more advanced science classes, but for some reason the teen had decided to stay in regular biology. Anyway, Kiku was making some awesome robot type thing, which had Alfred very interested.

Because Alfred talked for so long, it ended up being almost a half hour for a supposedly quick plant check. He then moved onto the Kreb's Cycle, which he could tell was boring some of the kids. His eyes wandered towards Arthur during his lecture, and he saw that the teen seemed to be taking notes, which was a first in Arthur's case so far in this class.

"Alright, I've bored you enough. You can have the rest of the block to chill. Study your notes over the weekend, cause I might give you a quiz next Tuesday. Not sure yet, but just in case." Alfred finished up the class, fifteen minutes before the bell.  
It was during lunch when things got interesting. There were three lunch periods, first, second, and third. Second lunch also happened to be Alfred's. Usually he'd go across the street to get an italian, but today he decided upon going to the cafeteria on a whim. It was when he was about halfway there though, when he ran into someone unexpectedly.

"Artie, what are you doing out here?"

The teen was sitting on one of the large window sills that showed a clear view of the parking lot, by a couple rows of lockers. He had a notebook out, and seemed to be writing something down.

"Nothing," Arthur answered quickly, shoving the notebook into his bag and tensing up.

"Where are you supposed to be right now dude?" Alfred asked him.

"Nowhere," Arthur replied boredly, leaning back against the wall.

"There's never a nowhere. I'm guessing you have second lunch, right? How come you aren't in the cafeteria? I heard they're serving cake with the main meal today." Alfred told him lightly. Even if he liked to be carefree, he was also a teacher. Student's weren't aloud to just hang out in the hallways, unless it was between classes.

"I don't eat at school," Arthur informed him.

"What? Why not?" Alfred asked, perplexed. Everyone ate in school. It was just the primary place to eat, seeing as you were stuck there for almost seven hours a day.

"I dunno," The teen replied with a shrug. "I usually get lunch after school, on my way home. There's this cafe..." He then trailed off, instantly clamping his mouth shut as if telling his teacher this was a crime.

"That's no good, you shouldn't wait so long to have lunch," Alfred told him with a concerned frown. "Come on, let's both head down to the cafeteria and get something. Besides, you aren't allowed in the hallways during lunch. It's either the cafeteria or the library."

"I'm not going to the cafeteria, and I'm banned from the Library until November." Arthur said.

"Banned from the library? Geez, how'd that happen?" Alfred wondered.

"It wasn't even my fault! It was all Gilbert's doing!" Arthur snapped defensively.

"Okay, okay, calm down." Alfred said. "I'll give you a different choice then. You can go the the cafeteria, or you can stay in a classroom. Mine's open if you want. It'll give you a chance to catch up on more of your work."  
"And if I choose neither?" Arthur asked, clearly annoyed.

"Then I can go get Roderich and you can talk about it with him. I hate to be some evil bad guy, since I'm usually a total hero, but since I'm a teacher it's my duty." Alfred answered apologetically.

"Fine, I'll go to your classroom." Arthur huffed.

"Awesome! My doors unlocked, you can head along there and get to work. I'll be there soon, I just gotta get lunch." Alfred told him, before going back to heading towards the lunchroom.

By the time he got his tray of pizza, a clementine, and a large slice of chocolate cake, Alfred made it back to the classroom. Thankfully he saw that Arthur seemed to be working on the stuff in his folder.

"Alfred, hello!" Someone greeted him from behind, before Alfred had barely even entered the classroom. He turned around to see Tino, accompanied by Berwald. Berwald was the woodshop teacher. He was a very skilled with his woodwork, and even sold homemade furnature for pretty cheap. He also happened to have been married to Tino, though they had each kept their own last names.

"Hi guys, what's up?" Alfred greeted them with his usual smile.

"We were wondering if you wanted to have lunch with us, since it's both our break too!" Tino said cheerfully. Alfred noticed that they each held paper bags in their hands, which was most likely their lunch.

"Sure!" Alfred agreed readily. "But let's have it in my room, kay? I've got a student spending his lunchtime here too."

"Alright!" Tino agreed. "Come on Berwald, let's eat here."

"A'right," Berwald agreed, following Tino into the classroom. Berwald may have looked a little touch and intimidating, but he was really a nice guy once you got to know him.

"Guys, this is Arthur. He's a Sophomore so you probably haven't had him Tino, and I don't think you've taken woodshop have you Artie?" Alfred introduced him to the others.

"Hello Arthur, I'm Mr. Väinämöinen! I teach English to Juniors, so you might have me next year!" Tino introduced himself.

"N'd I'm Mr Oxe'nstierna" Berwald added. "I t'ch woodshop."

"Erm, nice to meet you." Arthur said quietly, almost looking shy in Alfred's opinion, which was weird since Arthur never seemed shy. He normally just seemed withdrawn, but willingly so.

For the remainder of lunch, Alfred sat up from with his fellow teacher friends while they ate. Arthur clearly didn't want in on any conversations, so they left him to his work. Alfred caught Arthur looked out the window a few times, seemingly lost in his thoughts. He looked sort of sad. Alfred wished he could read minds so he could tell what that kid was thinking. Truthfully he was terrible at reading moods or the atmosphere, according to his brother anyway.

But to be able to get a view into Arthur Kirkland's mind...

It was something that would probably help a lot.

* * *

"It's raining awful hard out there," Alfred noted, observing the pouring rain, and occasional flashes of lightning.

"Hmm," Arthur agreed absentmindedly as he finished watering the class's plants.

It was nearing the end of Arthur's detention. Alfred was packing up his things so he could be headed home quickly too. After all, he and Matthew were driving down to their mom's early tomorrow morning, and he still needed to pack and get a good night's sleep.

"Someone's picking you up, right?" Alfred asked with a frown. On Friday's the four o'clock activity buses don't run. He wasn't sure what sort of transportation route Arthur usually took home, but if he walked there was no way he'd make it home in one piece.

"I don't live that far from here," Arthur answered stiffly. "It's only a fifteen minute walk."

"There's no way I'm letting you walk home in that." Alfred told him. "Is there any way one of your family members can pick you up? You can use my classroom phone to call."

"They're working," Arthur said shortly. "And I'll be fine. I've walked through worse weather before."

"Dude, it's like a hurricane out there!" Alfred exclaimed. "You know what? I'll drive you home."

"No bloody way, I told you I'll be fine!" Arthur yelled.

"Come on Arthur, it won't be any trouble!" Alfred reassured him. "Now let's get going before the storm gets even worse."

Arthur looked like he wanted to punch somebody, but finally gave in and followed his teachers out of the classroom and down the hall. Alfred led him to his vehicle, which was a green jeep. They had to run fast across the parking lot, but even that wasn't enough. By the time they got into the jeep, both were soaked to the skin.

"See, it's a good thing you're getting a ride, huh?" Alfred pointed out, and then noticed Arthur's teeth chattering. "Hold on a sec, lemme get the heat on."

It didn't take that long for Alfred's jeep to warm up. It was fairly new; he'd just gotten it last month. He'd used to have an awesome little blue car before this. It was old, and Matthew urged him to get a different car, but Alfred had loved it. One day though, the car had just crapped out and went to sleep forever.

"Alrighty now, what's your address?" Alfred asked a few minutes later after they had both warmed up.

"51 Brown street," Arthur answered automatically.

"Hey, you live on brown street? That's not far from me and Mattie's house! It's just two roads over on Marlow street, the house with the huge American flag and red shutters!" Alfred prattled on cheerfully as he pulled out of the parking lot and proceeded towards their destination. He turned on the radio and played the rock station, since it was always nice to have noise in the background.

"So Artie, how much do you like animals?" Alfred asked randomly.

"It depends on what one. I'm fond of cat's..." Arthur answered cautiously.

"Oh that's right, I remember we talked about your old pet cat once!" Alfred remembered. "Well you know what? I should totally take you to the clinic Mattie works at! they've got lots of hurt and sick cats there who I bet would love some visitors!"

"Oh. Um, yeah. That would be cool." Arthur agreed, and Alfred's smile got even bigger if that was possible.

"Awesome! I'll totally check with Mattie and set up a date for you to come then!" He said.

Right after speaking, Alfred pulled onto Brown street. He drove for a few seconds before reaching the house that had a mailbox with the number 51 on it. The house didn't look too bad. It was two stories, with a lawn that looked a little overgrown, and the paint was chipping off the sides of the house, but it still looked good. Alfred was glad it wasn't some beaten up shack or something, because that's what he'd sometimes imagined before.

"This is your house, right?" Alfred asked.

"Yes, this is it." Arthur answered, and so Alfred pulled into the driveway, which was empty. "Um, thanks for-"

"No problem!" Alfred interrupted. "Anytime you need something, a ride, someone to talk to, you can come to me okay? You're a good kid Arthur, I know it. Me, and Roderich, and everyone else has your back, okay? We're here to help."

"Thanks," Arthur said, averting his eyes from his teacher's. "Well, I suppose I should go. Have a good weekend Mr. Jones."

"You too Art," Alfred said, before Arthur shut the door and proceeded into his house. Alfred stayed in the driveway to make sure that Arthur made it in okay. Once the teen was inside, he backed up and was off.

Later that day, he got a call from Roderich telling him that the meeting with Arthur's brother would be Tuesday morning.

**a/n: Thanks to all the lovely reviews for last chapter! I hope this chapter was to your liking as well!**


	3. Chapter 3

There was only one way you could tell that Allister Kirkland was brother's with Arthur. They had the same shade of brilliant green eyes, which often reminded one of a forest. Other than that though, they looked different. While Arthur was a blondie, Allister's hair was dark red. He was also quite tall and burly, while Arthur was short but lean. Yes, a very noticeable difference between them.

"Sorry I'm late, I had a few things to take care of," Was the first thing that came out of the redhead's mouth. His voice was gruff, and also seemed more Scottish sounding than English.

"No trouble at all. It's also quite a pleasure to meet you in person Mr. Kirkland." Roderich said smoothly, holding out his hand to shake.

"Er, right. Good to meet 'ya too." Allister replied.

"My name's Alfred Jones, I'm Arthur's Biology teacher." Alfred then decided to say, holding out his own hand. When Allister shook it, Alfred noted how firm the other's grip was. His hands also felt quite calloused. Once Allister was seated, Roderich decided to begin.

"So, as I've told you on the phone, quite a few of us are concerned about Arthur."

"Yeah, I know he's been doing bad lately," Allister admitted guiltily. "It's a little difficult to make sure he behaves all the time though. My work hours are pretty strenuous sometimes."

"We completely understand how difficult things were. We also know that Arthur isn't a bad child at all. Just a year ago he was one of the best student's in his grade. Now he's barely passing his classes, even failing some." Roderich informed him. "Not only that, but he also has a habit of skipping, which is partly why his grades are so low."

"I didn't know it was this bad. I was sort of hoping it was just a phase." The Scotsman said.

"Actually, I just updated his Biology grade today. It's a C+ now." Alfred blurted out, wanting to give Arthur at least some sort of credit even if he wasn't here.

"That's wonderful," Roderich beamed. "But also Mr. Kirkland, I was wondering if you would be okay with discussing Arthur's homelife as well. Sometimes we comes to school quite upset. How is his relationship with you and the rest of the family?'

"Eh, not great I'm afraid," Allister admitted gruffly. "There's a lot of arguing that goes on. We got along a lot better when we were younger. Now everything is so stressful though. Money is tight so I'm working my ass off, and Seamus is working daily and taking night classes at the University. Together we're trying to pay for Dylan's college, _and _pay the bills."

"Goodness, that sounds very stressful. Are you getting any help at all?"  
"Nah, not really. Well, I've had a social worker stop by a few months ago and she suggested Arthur get sent away. There's no way in hell I'd ever agree to that though. Our family stays together." Allister told them determinedly.

"Of course. Yes, separation is definitely not the answer," Roderich agreed. "I do suggest that you and your brother's maybe try to help Arthur out a bit. I know he doesn't show it, but he needs some help."

"What do you suggest?" Allister asked.

"Maybe just try to talk to him more. I know it's difficult because everyone's busy, but maybe try to schedule some family time. Even if it's just sitting at the dinner table, or watching a movie once a week. You could even see if he needs homework help." Roderich listed off.

"Alright, I can do that." Allister agreed, and then checked his watch. "I need 'ta get going though, if I want to make it to work in time."

"Ah, yes of course. We're glad that you could make it here today." Roderich said.

"Same here. I promise to do everything I can to help my wee brother," Allister said.

Alfred believed him.

* * *

"Who can name all three domains?" Alfred asked the next day in class. Everyone seemed sleepy today, despite it being a Wednesday. Usually Monday's were the tough mornings to get through.

Like usual, Kiku's hand was the first (and only) hand to shoot up.

"What do you got for me Kiku?"

"Eukarya, Archaea, and Bacteria," The Japanese boy answered.

"Excellent!" Alfred answered, clapping his hands together. "Now who can tell me what domain we humans fit into?"

Nobody but Kiku raised their hand, and Alfred faked a loud over dramatic sigh.

"C'mon you guys, it's Wednesday, not Monday! Didn't anyone besides Kiku do their homework last night? At least give me something, even a guess! Arthur, what about you?" Alfred asked. Then it registered in his brain just whose name he had said, and looked at his student hopefully.  
Arthur for once hadn't had his head down on his desk. Instead he'd seemed to actually be paying attention.

"Eukarya," He answered almost lazily. "We're multicellular organisms."

For a moment Alfred just stood there, gawking at his student. Arthur normally never answered, even when called on. Normally he would either stay silent, come up with some witty response, or as he'd done in one case, give him the finger. Finally Alfred realized that he was just staring, and quickly came back to reality.

"Good. Yeah, very good dude! Did you do your homework?"

Arthur only shrugged, looking back down at his notebook. The rest of the class had been staring open mouthed too, but then quickly looked back at their teacher.

"Er...alright then. I guess we'll really see why did their homework last night, cause I have a worksheet for everyone. You won't lose points for failing, but you'll earn some extra credit if you do well on it. Oh yeah, did I mention you could work with a partner? You have the rest of the class to work." Alfred instructed.

As usual, the class erupted into chatter, people moving around the room, taking out their headsets and ipods, and getting to work. After making sure that none of the other students needed him, Alfred then made a beeline towards Arthur's desk.

"You did your homework, didn't you?" He asked excitedly.

"I always do your homework," Arthur answered dryly as he wrote an answer down on his paper. Alfred was in shock for the second time that period.

"What? Are you serious?"

"There's nothing else to do when I'm stuck at home."

"But...but why don't you ever turn it in?! Don't you realize how important homework is towards your grade?"

Arthur only shrugged again, and Alfred could tell that he wouldn't give him a reason for now. He decided to take the conversation somewhere else. Just as he was about to tell Arthur what the plans for today's detention was, a girl up front raised her hand.

"Well, keep up the good work in class okay? I think you're doing great."

* * *

Today's detention was a quiet one. Alfred worked on his computer putting in the recent grades for his AP class's tests, and Arthur was reading his lab bio textbook and filling out a worksheet that went along with the reading.

"I met your brother today," Alfred informed the teen.

"I know..." Arthur said begrudgingly.

"You act like that's a bad thing," Alfred said jokingly.

"It is," Arthur told him.

"How come?"

Arthur glared down at his textbook. "Because he's going to kill me when he finds out how bad I'm doing." He answered. "Not that I care or anything. I'm just not looking forward to getting lectured."

"That right there is why Arthur," Alfred said suddenly, shutting his laptop. He needed to get it through to Arthur what bad choices he was making. "He's not going to be mad about you because of your grades. It's because of your attitude. It's because you don't care."

"You don't know anything!" Arthur snapped.

"No, I don't. Because you seclude yourself from everybody. You don't talk to the students, to Roderich, to the teachers. You don't talk to me. I'll always be there to listen Arthur, but I can't help if you never talk. I know things in your life have been pretty shitty, but that's no excuse to just give up on yourself and everybody around you."

When Arthur didn't say anything, Alfred sighed.

"You're such a smart kid Artie. Your teachers from last year said you were brillient. You had tons of friends, you always helped people. You were basically the model student, and you know what? You still have a chance to be that person again. Don't you realize what that would mean? You could go to any college you wanted, and it would probably all be paid for!"

"Just stop it, okay? I don't want to hear this."

"You have to hear this. Arthur I'm not yelling at you because I'm mad. It's because I'm worried about you, and I care. I know what it's like to lose a parent. You feel like nothing will ever be okay again. I totally get that," Alfred said, but then stopped talking when he looked at Arthur. The kid's eyes were rimmed red, freshly made tears running down his cheeks.

"I-I'm sorry," Arthur finally choked out, wiping his sleeve across his face.

"I'm not the one you should be saying sorry to. You should be telling that to yourself." Alfred said, his voice a lot softer now.

"It's just...everything sucks. Allister won't even let me get a job to help out. I don't even get along with any of them, when they're home that is. Allister's always working, Seamus works during the day too, and also takes night classes. Dylan's always in classes, and when he's not studying he's out doing something. I used to try and help, but they would just yell at me and tell me to go study or something. So you know what? I decided not to give a shit anymore."

That was probably the longest thing Alfred had ever heard Arthur say. It was also the most Arthur had ever revealed about his personal life as well. That made Alfred do what anyone who saw a kid in distress do. He hugged Arthur, as if he were a father hugging a child. Right then and there he almost wished that Arthur was his own. The poor kid's childhood had been long ruined, and there was nothing that could fix the past. The only thing now was to fix the present and the future.

"It's okay Arthur. You aren't alone anymore."

* * *

Usually it wasn't approved for a teacher to hang out with a student outside the classroom, unless they were related for family friends. It was different for Arthur though, and when Alfred had run his idea through to Roderich, even the guidance counselor had agreed.

So Alfred had called Allister and asked permission to borrow Arthur for the upcoming Saturday and take him to the animal clinic that Matthew worked at. The Scottish man had said yes without any hesitation, and so it was settled. Arthur most certainly seemed like an animal person. Besides, a person changed when they were around such creatures. Animals had a way of making one feel happy.

On Saturday when Alfred got to Arthur's house, he saw that Arthur was already sitting outside, waiting for him. Well at least his older brother had told him about it, because it would have been a bit awkward if Arthur didn't know he was spending the day with his teacher.

"Hi Artie!" He greeted once Arthur had gotten in. "I'm glad you agreed to this. We're gonna have an awesome day."

"Um, what are we doing again? My brother wasn't very clear."

"We're going to hang out at the clinic my brother works at. A lot of the animals there need cheering up, plus Mattie wants to meet you. After that I figured we could stop and get lunch. Doesn't sound too horrible, right?"

"Mmm," Arthur agreed with a shrug of the shoulders.

**Willow's Animal Hospital** was a small building on the other side of town. The windowsills had flowers on them, and the grass was freshly green. Alfred parked on the curb, and then proceeded to lead Arthur inside to the waiting room.

"Hello Alfred. Here to see Matthew?" A receptionist sitting at the desk greeted them.

"You bet. We're here to cheer up the animals too." Alfred answered, putting a hand on Arthur's shoulder. He led them through a door and down a hall towards a door that said Staff Access Only. Alfred didn't even knock, despite not working there. He only grabbed the knob and opened the door, revealing a room full of animals, all of them in cages. A blonde haired man in a lab coat was standing by a cage with a puppy inside, writing something down on a clipboard. He looked quite similar to Alfred.

"Hi bro, what's up?" Alfred greeted loudly, causing some of the dogs in the room to bark. The man who was obviously Matthew turned around, smiling at his guests.

"Hi guys," He answered. "Just finishing feeding these guys."

"How's Rocky doing?" Alfred asked, looking at the small Labrador puppy in the cage that Matthew was standing by.

"Of just great!" Matthew beamed. "He'll be able to go home tomorrow. Granted he'll have to take pain meds, but his leg will eventually be all better."

"Awesome! Oh hey, this is my student I've been telling you about, Arthur Kirkland. Artie, this is my brother Mattie." Alfred introduced them.

"Hi Arthur, it's nice to meet you," Matthew said softly, smiling as he shook Arthur's hand. Arthur immediately was able to notice a huge difference between the brothers. Matthew was much calmer and not as energetic as Alfred was.

"It's nice to meet you too..." Arthur replied a little awkwardly. He was never that good with introductions.

"Al's told me that you like cats. Is that true?" Matthew inquired.

"Yes," Arthur told him. "They're my favorite animals."

Matthew grinned. "I have a job for you then. Come on over here," He said, leading Arthur over to the other side of the room. They stopped in front of a cage, and Arthur peered inside, giving a small gasp. Inside was a gray stripped cat, but that wasn't all. There were four small kittens cuddled up beside her.

"This is Nova. She's a stray cat we found about a months ago, and she was pregnant. Just a few weeks ago she gave birth to these little guys. Someone agreed to adopt Nova, but not the kittens. Al and I are going to take one, but we can't take all of them in. Would you be interested in one?" Matthew asked. At first Arthur's mouth opened in shock, and he gazed down at the kittens. Then he nodded wordlessly at Matthew.

"That's great! You don't have to decide which one right now. They're kind of lonely and I figured you'd like to play with them. They've been practically begging for attention."

Matthew didn't have to say anything else. Already Arthur had opened the cage and began stroking the mother's head, and talking softly to the family of cats. Alfred and Matthew watched from a distance, and Alfred chuckled, putting an arm around Matthew's shoulder.

"I think this is just what he needed."

**a/n: Sorry for the long wait. We had finals a few weeks ago, and I've also been adjusting to my new classes.** **Hopefully you guys haven't given up on me.**

**Tell me how you like it!**


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